Dual purpose handle for portable shopping carts



July 4, 1950 G. SIMONIAN 2,513,526

DUAL PURPOSE HANDLE FOR PORTABLE SHOPPINQ CARTS Filed Dec. 11, 1948 INVENTOR. 76.5- eeqm 5/M0A/MA/ Patented July 4, 1950 UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE Di PURPOSE'HANDLE FOR PORTABLE SHOPPING CART S Gerald Simonian, F1-esno, Calif.

Application December 11,'1948,:SerialNo. 64,864

*form a compact, portable unit when not in use and is more particularly directed to improvement in handle construction for a cart such as disclosed in my co-pending application, Serial Number 694,279, filed August 31, 1946, now Patent 2,439,992 issued April 20, 1948.

The usual practice has been to provide shopping carts of the folding type with a handle for propelling and guiding the cart when in use and another handle for carrying the folded cart. The principal object of the present invention is to eliminate the separate carrying handle and provide a unitary handle structure serving as both a propelling and a carrying handle. Another object is to include means in the handle structure for holding it in cart propelling position, which means will also serve to lock the folding portions of the cart body in the open or expanded form.

The foregoing objects, as well as other objects and advantages which will be made evident, are attained by the construction hereinafter described and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawing where;

Figure 1 is a view in sideelevation showing the cart opened and in condition for use.

Figure 2 is a sectional view showing the extension members of the cart, plus the foldable handle, in partly folded position.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the closed cart showing the handle positioned for carrying.

Figure 4 is a detail view of the locking prop and section of the handle, looking towards the left in Figure l, and showing the lock-head on the end of the prop, and

Figure 5 is a sectional detail view of the upper portion of the cart extensions showing the registering openings engageable by the lock-head on the prop.

Referring to the drawing, the cart comprises an oblong rectangular body or housing having side walls I and II and end walls I2 and I3. Opposite extension members I4 and I are hinged at the lower ends, as at I6 to the upper edges of the end walls I2 and I3 each member being equal in length to the distance between the end walls and each being formed with side Wings Ila and I5a extending at right angles from the opposite longitudinal edges of the two extension members. The opposite pairs of side wings are designed to meet and form overlapping edges at approximately the central transverse vertical 3 Claims. (01. zed-36) planeof the cart body, as shown in Figure 1. Each wing'is provided witha key-hole type aperture I! in its upper portion and these are positioned to register in each pair when the extensions l4, I5 are in upright position, for a purpose to be described.

A bail-shaped propelling and guiding handle I8 is pivotally connected at I9 to the innerjsides of the side wings of extension I5 and each arm of the handle is'provided with a locking prop or strut 20 of resilient metal which prop has one end pivoted to the handle at 2| and its other end provided with a latch or hook 22 (Figure 4) formedwith a knob-like head adapted to pass through the larger openings of the registered apertures II whereupon the neck of the latch can enter the smaller openings With which it has a frictional or snap fit. This serves to lock the handle in extended position and at th same time to lock the extensions I4, I5, firmly in upright position, as in Figure 1 which shows the expanded or operating form of the cart. As the props 2B are of spring metal they can be bent to allow the knobs on hooks 22 to enter apertures I! and a slight backward pull on the handle will cause the necks of the hooks to snap into the smaller end of said apertures to hold all related parts in position.

In connection with collapse of the cart into portable box-like form and in connection with the dual purpose of the handle I8, the end wall l2 of the cart body is provided with a, transverse elongated slot 23 and the loop end of the handle with an offset at I80, adapted to extend through slot 23 when the cart is collapsed.

To close up the cart the props 20 are first released by reversing the steps above described whereupon the handle I8 is swung down within extension I5 and said extension folded down into the body of the cart as illustrated in Figure 2, with the offset end I8a of the handle projecting through slot 23. Extension I4 is then folded down over I5 and complementallatch elements at 24, 25 interlocked.

The bottom of the cart body is closed by a construction including retractable supporting wheels such as disclosed and claimed in my Patent No. 2,439,992, April 20', 1948, and comprising a panel 26 supported on pivotable angle strips 21 journaled on pins 28 at the middle of the side members Ill, I I of the cart body. At one side of its pivot panel 26 has a pair of spaced brackets 29 supporting an axle 30 on the ends of which the rubber-tired wheels 3| are journaled. The forward part of panel 26 carries a fixed central U-shaped support 32 which, together with wheels 3|, provides a three-point support for keeping the cart upright when not being wheeled. As will be evident, panel 26 can be reversed on its axis at 28 to brin the wheels to and from operative position. To look panel 26 in either position there is provided a bracket 33 secured to end wall l3 having vertically spaced slotted arms 34. These arms=:cooperate with -rotatable.keys, or fasteners, 35,-at-each end 0f panel 26-which are positioned to engage one or the other of the slots in the arms of bracket 33 in the respective positions of panel 26 and whemso engaged turning the key 35 securely locks "the panel.

As will be seen, collapse of the extensions and handle as described and reversal ofithenbottom panel reduces the cart to -the,form..,shown in Figure 3 where the projecting offset portion of the handle serves as a carrying handlei'f-or-ithe collapsed cart.

-,-Minor modifications .-.are .pbviously possible .withinthe scope of: the; invention. as .defined in the-following claims:

What is claimed is:

. 1...A cart of the class described comprising. a

rectangular box-like body having a wall thereof provided with a transverse slot, an. extension panel hinged to-the upper edge of said wall-and provided with side wings assimilarpaneleand wings .on the opposite -w al1,- theside. wings .of the -.;guiding handle pivoted to the upper end of said .panel.andfoldablewith the panel to extend with- ...yim-the' lbody, said handle having a terminal loop portion passing through said slot when the panel 5::1'S' closed.

,3. A cart-of .theclass described comprising a rectangular box-like body, extension panels hinged to opposite Walls of said body having side 2O wings meeting substantially midway of the body whens-the extensions: are. in .-upright position, a (bail-shaped guidingshandle'pivoted, to the upper endaof oneaextension panel and ioldable within it, locking propspivoted on the arms of the han- .dle, and-:latching-means on the free endsof-the props engageablefiwith: the-meeting edges-ofethe side. wings to-lock :the extensions and handle in upright positions. I

. GERALD ,SIMQN REFERENCES CITED .The. following references :are of record. -in.the file of this patent:

Y UNITED STATES). PATENTS Number 7 .Name .JDate 877,350 .Long -.Jan. 21,1908 1', l50,193 .Thomas Apr; 3, 1923 

